The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Israel Security Agency (ISA) revealed in a statement on Monday that Fateh Sherif, a senior Hamas leader in Lebanon, was killed during an airstrike.
Sherif, also an employee of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), had been coordinating terror activities between Hamas and Hezbollah and was responsible for recruiting militants and procuring weapons for Hamas in Lebanon, as reported by Breitbart [1].
The joint operation, led by the IDF and ISA, targeted Sherif in the al-Bass refugee camp in the southern Lebanese city of Tyre.
The IDF described Sherif as the head of Hamas’ Lebanon branch and emphasized that he played a key role in advancing Hamas’ political and military agenda in Lebanon. The IDF vowed to continue targeting those who threaten Israeli civilians.
UNRWA acknowledged that Sherif had been a principal at one of its schools and confirmed that he had been suspended in March, pending an investigation into his political affiliations. The agency’s leadership faced criticism, especially after Sherif’s suspension sparked protests in Lebanon.
Israel has long criticized UNRWA’s ties to terrorist activities [2], pointing to several of its employees’ involvement in the October 7 attacks on Israeli civilians.
Israeli government spokesman David Mencer questioned UNRWA’s leadership, asking how a known terrorist was allowed to work as a schoolteacher. Mencer also pointed to UNRWA’s ongoing collaboration with Hamas, arguing that the agency cannot be reformed.
Israel has called for the dismantling of UNRWA, and under former President Donald Trump, U.S. funding to the agency was cut off in 2018.
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